Aircraft location instrument



Juhe 13, 1944.. J, WALKER ETAL 2,351,563

AIRCRAFT LOCATION INSTRUMENT Filed Oct. 13, 1941 (fa/2n f2. Well/667" 65 James flf Wed/37627" IN V EN TORS ATTDR NEYS Patented June 13, 1944 smoasr'r LOCATION ms'raomm'n John 1!. Walker and James M. Walker, Ste. Genevieve, Mo.

' Application October 13, 1941, Serial No. 414,900

1 Claim. (01. 115-183) Our invention relates to landing facilities for aircraft and has among its objects and advantages the provision of an improved altitude, horizontal and vertical position indicator.

In the accompanying drawing:

Figure 1 is a face view of an accordance with our invention;

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 2-4 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a view taken from the position indicated by the line 4-4 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a sectional view along the line 4-4 of Figure 1; and

Figure 5 is a diagrammatic and partly sectional view of a landing field operating in conjunction with the instrument of Figure 1.

In the embodlment'selected for illustration, we make use of a panel it upon which is mounted a vertical altitude indicating instrument l2 provided with a dial l4. In the dial illustrated, a scale is is provided thereon, which scale reads in units of feet and the altitude of the airplane above the landing field may be determined by noting the position of the needle I! on the scale it.

Instrument l2 comprises a cup-shaped housing having a flange 22 fixedly secured to the panel ill by screws 24. An opening 26 is provided in the panel for exposing the dial i4, and a glass plate 28 extends across the opening and is made secure through tightening of the screws 24,

Inside the housing 20 is secured a vertical strap 30 through the medium of screws 32, the dial I4 being fixedly secured to the strap 30 by screws instrument in 34. The lower end of the strap 30 is bent to provide an upstanding member 36 which is provided with a threaded opening for the reception of an adjusting screw I4 constituting a bearing for one end of a shaft 40, the opposite end of this shaft being extended through an opening 42 in the strap 34 and fixedly secured to the needle i8.

One end of a hair spring 44 is secured at 46 to the strap 30, and the opposite end of the spring is secured to the shaft 40. The spring 44 is so tensioned as to yieldingly hold the needle in the position of Figure 1 at the highest altitude reading thereon.

To the shaft is fixedly secured a cross arm 48 having a magnet 50 secured to one end thereof and a non-magnetic counterbalance 52 secured to its opposite end. Clockwise rotation is imparted to the needle is of Figure 1 when the magnet 50 is brought into predetermined proximity with the landing field 54 having runways 56 and 58 constructed thereon. Each of the runways 56 and 58 is provided with a series of electromagnets 60, each group being electrically connected with a circuit 62 controlled by a switch 64. As a ship equipped with our instrument approaches the landing field 54, the operator of a field control office closes the selected runway so as to bring the instrument 12 into action. As the airplane descends upon the landing field, the magnet 50 is moved clockwise direction in accordance with the altitude of the airplane so that the pilot may determine the altitude by noting the position of the needle 14 with respect to the scale IS.

A second instrument 66 is mounted on the panel i0, which instrument comprises a dial 68 and a needle is pivoted at 12 on the dial. The needle Iii is normally in the depending position of Figure 1 but functions as a magnet to be attracted by either the energized runways 55 or 58 as the airplane is brought into predetermined proximity to the landing field 54. When the needle 'lli is attracted to the left, the airplane is in a position to the right of the landing field. Similarly, movement of the needle to the right indicates that the airplane is in a position to the left of the landing field. Thus the instrument 66 indicates the horizontal location of the airplane with respect to the landing field, while the instrument l2 indicates the altitude of the airplane with respect to the landing field.

A second altitude indicator 14 is mounted on the panel III. This indicator comprises a glass tube 18 supported in brackets 18 secured to the panel Iii. The tube 16 is provided with a scale and contains a predetermined volume of liquid 82 having non-freezing properties.

Inside the tube 16 is provided a float 82 having a metal body 84 attached thereto, which body is under the influence of the energized landing field so as to descend in the tube 18 in accordance with the altitude of the airplane. Instrument 14 functions as a check on the instrument Without further elaboration, the foregoing will so fully illustrate our invention, that others may, by applying current knowledge, readily adapt the same for use under various conditions of service.

We claim: f

In an instrument of the character described, a support panel having an opening therein, a cylindrical housing having the rear end closed and the front end open, an annular outwardly directed flange at the front end of the housing disposed against the panel, the opening in the panel registering with the interior of the housing,

to swing the needle is in ameans for detachably'securing the housing flange to the panel, a transp'az ent dial disk having agraduated scale thereon mounted between the panel and housingfl'ang'e to covetthe front of the housing, a rigiddiametrically, extendingrstrap secured vertically within" the forward 'partzotfthe' housing, an upstanding support element" disposed rearwardly of th'esstrap, a horizontally disposed shaft having its forward portion journaled in an opening-in thesstrap and its' rear end' pivotally supported in annadjustable screw'mount'ed on said support element} a 'pointerflxed to-the front end of the shatt for movement in co-acting 1 to the scale.

JOHN H; JAMES M. 

